Raised voices greeted her when she exited the lift at level 2, intent to return to her glass cage of an office. She followed the noise to the Improper Use of Magic Office bullpen where Mafalda Hopkirk was leaning over a cubicle screaming her head off at the occupant of the desk.
"Mafalda!" she exclaimed in shock. She had never heard the woman reprimanding someone so viciously in public before. "My office, now!"
Mafalda jumped and stood stock still, her face bright red at being caught.
"I believe I gave you an order," Hermione said, her voice dangerously low. Mafalda slunk off towards the DMLE managerial offices without a word.
Hermione turned towards the desk that Mafalda had been standing at and was not at all surprised to find Thorfinn Rowle sitting at the desk.
"Thorfinn, didn't I tell you, you could go home for the day?" she asked softly, sitting on the edge of his desk. "You've done nothing wrong, please remember that."
"Yes, ma'am," he said softly, not looking at her while he gathered his belongings together.
"Hannah, see to it that Thorfinn makes it home okay," she said, gesturing towards Hannah Green, the short brunette girl who sat opposite Thorfinn.
"Sure thing, Hermione," Hannah said brightly, quickly putting her work into neat piles on her desk and getting her handbag out.
"I'll speak to you in the morning, Thorfinn, have a good night," she said, putting her hand on his shoulder. She was surprised when he put his hand over hers and looked up at her. His eyes were full of unshed tears over the verbal dressing down he'd received from Mafalda.
"Thanks, Hermione," he whispered, squeezing her hand before coughing and sorting the paperwork on his desk. "I'll be ready in a moment, Hannah."
Hermione sighed loudly and marched off towards her office.
"She'll be right, mate," she heard Hannah say to Thorfinn in her strong New Zealand accent as she walked away. She'd long since picked up on some of the slang that Hannah used. She'll be right meant no worries.
Mafalda was waiting for her when she arrived at her door, but didn't say anything when she was let into the glass enclosed office and shown to a seat.
"Why don't you tell me what was happening out there," Hermione prompted, leaning her elbow on the desk and staring intently at Mafalda.
"The scum hadn't been doing his job and was skiving off home, I gave him a piece of my mind," Mafalda said without sounding regretful for her actions at all.
"I gave Rowle the afternoon off, so he was not skiving and I do not appreciate your attitude," Hermione said furiously. "He is at the end of his probation and has not put a foot wrong, he's put up with your behaviour and taken it on the chin for too long."
"Ah, I figured you were shagging him," Mafalda said wisely.
"How dare you speak to me like that?!" Hermione said heatedly. "Until this afternoon, I had not even spoken to him one on one."
Mafalda made the grave error of rolling of her eyes. Hermione narrowed her eyes and gritted her teeth.
"I do not appreciate the eye rolling, Mafalda," she said darkly. "Remind me, what is my policy regarding wrongdoing in my department?"
"Three strikes," Mafalda said promptly, almost against her will.
"Yes, three strikes," Hermione said softly. "You're fired, Mafalda."
"You can't fire me, I've worked here for thirty five years!" Mafalda exclaimed.
"I am the Deputy Head of this department, you are my direct subordinate, I sure as shit can fire you, and I am firing you!" Hermione exclaimed. "I told everybody in this department how important the Azkaban parole programme was and how everyone was to give Rowle a chance at a fresh start. But no, you've acted without a shred of integrity throughout his tenure here and I will not stand for someone like that in my department.
"Pack up your desk and hand any outstanding work over to Fudge. He will handle your work load until I hire your replacement. Leave your staff's performance appraisals on my desk, something tells me I will have to rewrite Rowle's one, just like last year."
"Hermione, please, I will apologise to Rowle, I will do better!" Mafalda pleaded.
"No, you won't be continuing your employment in this department," Hermione said, firmly. "When you arrive tomorrow, you can report to the House Elf Support Office where you will put your considerable skills towards continuing my work with House Elves."
"House Elf Support Office!" Mafalda shrieked, opening her mouth to speak again but closed it quickly on account of the thunderous look Hermione was giving her.
"Clear your desk, be gone by the end of the day."
Mafalda said nothing more only gifting Hermione with a sneer as she left the glass encased office. Hermione breathed a sigh of relief and sat back in her chair.
Finally, she'd had the opportunity to be shot of Mafalda. The woman had been a thorn in her backside ever since she had taken her position within the DMLE. Her past misdeed of polyjuicing herself as Mafalda had not warmed her to the witch and their relationship went downhill from there. Hermione favoured Harry, according to Mafalda, even though Hermione made sure to treat him the same as she had her subordinates in the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures.
But there was no pleasing the witch, and Hermione had to admit it wasn't even her performance that afternoon with Thorfinn Rowle. That was just the tip of the iceberg. Hermione had wanted to be shot of the witch for quite some time now.
It all started when her first move as Deputy Head of the DMLE was to amalgamate several offices into what became the cornerstones of the DMLE. The one move that got under Mafalda's skin was amalgamating the Misuse of Muggle Artefacts Office with the Improper Use of Magic Office, making the former a division within the latter. Mafalda hadn't been happy to take on another portfolio, especially one dealing with muggles.
Hermione sighed. At least now she could steer the office in the direction she wanted to, without micromanaging her prickly office head.
She looked up and made eye contact with her assistant. Michelle Grieves was a short, blonde woman with a penchant for pranks. She chose that moment to grin and held up a sign that read, 'Mafalda for S.P.E.W'
Hermione laughed for far too long and far too loudly at the sign which her assistant made disappear after showing it to her. She waved her wand and checked the wards on her office, the sound protection spell was still in force so Hermione supposed that Michelle must have heard about Mafalda's move from the horse's mouth.
"Early knock-off, I think, Michelle." Hermione grinned, sticking her head out the glass door of her office. "It's five o'clock somewhere."
Michelle looked like Christmas had come early. Well, Hermione supposed that she didn't give her department that many early knock offs, so it was special when it did happen.
"Attention DMLE staffers, unless your current project is dire you may all leave the premises, at the kind behest of Ms. Granger," Michelle said, her wand pressed against her neck so that her voice was magically magnified. "Reminder that the Auror Office and the Law Enforcement Office are to maintain minimum staffing levels."
"Thanks, Michelle, have a great night," Hermione said, warding her office as she left and started towards the Law Enforcement Office.
"Do you want me to hand over Improper Use to the LE Office for the night?" Michelle asked her, apparently guessing where she was headed.
"You're a lifesaver, Michelle." She grinned at the other woman.
"All in a day's work, captain!" Michelle laughed, giving her a salute as she walked towards the Improper Use of Magic Office. Mafalda was evidently finishing off with her desk and was waiting with a pile of blue folders – performance appraisals.
"For you." Mafalda grunted, thrusting the folders into her hands. Hermione nodded her thanks and swept away with the folders, catching Cornelius Fudge's eye and giving him a meaningful look as she passed.
She'd never expect her fifteen year old self to understand how she'd ever come to the point where she would trust Fudge with anything. But the man had accepted his fate after he lost the Minister for Magic role and instead of wasting away in some back office at the Ministry, he worked hard, harder than most in that department as if to prove something to himself.
With a wry smile, she walked into the lift and out of the ministry feeling like she had accomplished a lot with her day. Now, to return to the two most important reasons for her existence – Hugo and Rose.
#
"Mummy!" Hugo cried when she appeared at the front door of The Burrow. He threw himself into her arms and clung on.
"Let your mother breathe," Molly laughed from her position at the stove. Hermione looked up at the Weasley clock out of habit and breathed a sigh of relief. Ron's marker was pointed to 'At Work' as was George's, at least she wouldn't have to deal with him today.
"Rosie! Your mum is here" Molly called, turning her head towards the living room. Rose dragged herself into the kitchen at the request of her grandmother, waving vaguely at Hermione.
"Do I not get a hug?" Hermione asked, smiling at her daughter. Rose rolled her eyes and allowed her mother to wrap her arms around her. "Alright, what's going on?"
"Can we stay here for dinner?" Rose asked, twisting her hands behind her back.
Hermione sighed, she really wanted to say no so that she could return home with the children and couldn't stomach having a dinner with her ex-in-laws knowing that the interrogation would start. Molly would want to know if she'd been on dates and Arthur would want to talk to her about muggle aircraft again. Perhaps it had been a mistake to give him a Private Pilot Manual because now that he was retired he spent all his time reading that damn text book.
Hermione was sure he was going to ask her to view planes for him to buy in the near future. The flying Ford Anglia had been bad enough, but Arthur taking an actual aircraft to the sky made her quiver in her boots.
"Sure, as long as it's okay with your grandmother," Hermione replied in what she hoped was a cheery voice. She turned and looked in askance to Molly who was nodding and beaming.
Hermione busied herself with helping Molly with dinner while the two children slunk away to the living room. Molly was uncharacteristically silent while they worked, only speaking when she needed something but otherwise she focused on the task at hand.
This gave Hermione a chance to think through everything that had happened that day. Today marked the first time she had fired someone from her department. Of course, it was the Ministry of Magic, so firing didn't have the same weight as it did in the muggle world. Unless someone was truly reprehensible, they were merely moved to another department.
Her interaction with Thorfinn Rowle was the part of the day that kept coming back to her. Granted, she didn't really know him during the war, but she was surprised that he'd shown an emotional side today. She supposed she viewed him as a Death Eater, a mindless killing machine doing Lord Voldemort's bidding.
"Hermione, there's something –" Molly started but was cut off by the front door opening and Ron coming tumbling in the door with a woman she didn't recognise. George was close behind them with Angelina in tow.
"Hey mum!" Ron said jovially, a big smile on his face until he spotted Hermione. He suddenly looked like a deer caught in headlights.
"Hermione, what a surprise!" he said in a would-be casual voice, sauntering over to her.
"This is hardly a surprise, Ronald, you know that the children stay here during the day and that I pick them up after work," she hissed at him, rolling her eyes.
Ron said nothing, but shifted his feet. George shook his head slowly and patted his brother on the shoulder before disappearing into the living room, giving Hermione a wave as he went.
"Hermione, it's great to see you," Angelina said, looking like she wanted to exit as quickly as her husband had. She at least paused to kiss Hermione on the cheek before she disappeared.
"Uh, mum, I'll be in my room," Ron said shiftily, grabbing the unknown woman's hand and started dragging her out of the kitchen.
"I think not Ronald, you will introduce me to this woman or you're not to take her out of this room and into our children's presence." Hermione said through gritted teeth.
"She's already met them!" Ron retorted, his face quickly turning the same colour as his hair.
"Right, I guess I'll see you back in front of the Wizengamot for breaking our custody arrangement, Ronald," Hermione retorted, raising her eyebrows and crossing her arms.
"Hermione, I'm sure it won't come to that, let's sit and talk about this," Molly said desperately, striding over so she was between her son and daughter-in-law.
"I'm not going to sit and talk about this, we have an iron clad agreement in place which stipulates that all new partners have to be introduced to the other party before said new partner is introduced to the children." Hermione said, gifting Ron with a filthy look.
Ron was too busy imitating a goldfish while the woman behind him dashed out the front door. A small pop of apparition was heard once she was over the threshold. Hermione threw Ron one last look of contempt before striding into the living room.
She grabbed Rose and Hugo's hands and hauled them out of the room with a sharp word that they were leaving. Neither child argued when they saw the thunderous look on their mother's face. She ignored Ron when she re-entered the kitchen, he was still looking like a stunned mullet.
"Molly, I'll owl you later, I'm sorry to run out on dinner like this," she said calmly, smiling at Molly who looked devastated with the turn of events. She turned and marched the children out of The Burrow and apparated with them the moment she was outside of the wards guarding Weasley's home.
#
Once home, Hermione hauled the children upstairs for their baths, while calling out to their house elf, Stanty. When she was fourteen and trying to start the Society for the Promotion of Elfish Welfare, she'd never have thought that one day she would have a house elf.
Of course, that was without reckoning that she herself would set up the House Elf Support Office at the Ministry. Even if she hadn't, she'd seen enough from Harry and Sirius' relationships with Kreacher to know that a House Elf was the product of its environment and that they were happier with a master. Even though she had set up the House Elf Support Office ten years ago, her own House Elf still thought her odd for Hermione to give her money and days off work.
"Miss Hermione, dinner will be ready in twenty minutes," Stanta squeaked at her, appearing next to her in the hallway outside of the bathroom.
"Thanks, Stanty," she smiled at the small elf. The elf was wearing an outfit she quite often wore to cook: a black and white checkered jumpsuit with an outrageous pink apron. The children's dress up chef hat that Hermione had found at a muggle store was perched on her head.
Stanty always made her laugh with the clothes she chose to wear. It was the only part of the House Elf freedom bill that she embraced with open arms. Clothes were the only reason that Stanty accepted her salary from Hermione. She spent every last Knut she made on buying new clothes and paying for a subscription to a top muggle fashion magazine.
Hermione had had to put an undetectable extension charm on the house elf's closet owing to her running out of room for new clothes. She had to admit though, she was very happy to indulge the elf as it made her fourteen year old self smile.
"Bath, dinner and then play, I think," Hermione sighed to her children, waving her wand at the bathtub, which started filling with warm bubbly water straight away.
"Yes, mum," Rose and Hugo chanted as they took their clothes off and climbed into the cavernous bath. Hermione flicked her wand and the water stopped. Another flick and the bath toys plopped into the bath.
"Mum, why didn't we stay for dinner and grandma and grandpa's house?" Rose asked her, twisting to face her.
"Something came up, but there's nothing to worry about, you'll see grandma again tomorrow," Hermione smiled, waving her wand so that bubbles flowed out the end.
The sufficiently distracted Rose from her question. The girl squealed gleefully, clapping her hands together in a bid to squash the bubbles.
"Bubbles, bubbles!" Hugo cried crashing his arms in the water, causing a waves to crash around the edges of the bath.
Hermione laughed heartily, there was nothing better than seeing her children enjoying themselves. They were both what Hermione called bath-aholics, she couldn't tempt either of them to try showering which was infinitely quicker. She always felt guilty that she had to be away from them at work, so she cherished these moments at home with them, just the three of them.
The rest of the evening passed quickly, the dinner that Stanty had prepared was delicious, even the perpetually fussy Hugo had loved it. Rose didn't question anymore about their abrupt departure from The Burrow and she was glad, she never wanted the children caught between her and Ron.
Later, they spent far too long playing a game of Rose's invention after dinner resulting in the two children going to bed a behind schedule. In Hugo's room, the three of them curled up on the bed to read their bed time story.
"The Sly Fox and the Little Red Hen," Hermione read from the cover of the oft requested book. Hugo and Rose smiled and snuggled together while she read to them.
Hugo was all but asleep by the end, so Hermione kissed him softly on the cheek and scooped Rose up and crept out of the room. Rose was far from asleep when they arrived in her room and promptly talked Hermione into reading her another book.
"Let's read this," Rose said, pushing a thick book towards Hermione.
"I'll read the first chapter, and then tomorrow night you can read a chapter to me," Hermione reasoned. It was, after all, a novel and Hermione wasn't about to read the entire book to her in one evening.
The two of them curled up on Rose's bed and Hermione began to read once again. Rose was asleep before the end of the second page. Laughing to herself, Hermione put a marker in the book and scooted off the bed as quietly as she could.
"Mummy, are you ever going to be married to dad again?" Rose's voice called softly when Hermione reached the door.
"I don't think so, poppet," Hermione answered softly. "He and I are much better as friends, but we will always love you and Hugo."
"Grandma said you'd be mad when you found out that we had met dad's friend, Scarlet," Rose told her matter-of-factly.
"Grandma is always right, love." Hermione sighed. So Rose knew what they'd fought about, even though Molly had that kitchen warded.
"That's why I asked to stay for dinner, so you'd find out," Rose admitted.
"What?!" Hermione exclaimed, her brow furrowing. She would hex Ron if she found out he was bringing their children into the middle of their divorce.
"Dad told us not to tell you, even though I pointed out that you always say that honestly is the best policy," Rose said, tears brimming in her eyes as she spoke.
"Oh, sweetie, don't cry, it's not your fault," Hermione crooned, gathering her daughter up and holding her close.
"I'm sorry for lying, mummy," Rose said, her voice muffled by Hermione's robes.
"You have nothing to be sorry for, you were just doing as your father asked," Hermione soothed. "Now, it's time for sleep, young lady."
Rose gave her a watery smile and laid back down. Hermione wiped away her tears and kissed each cheek. She kept her smiling mask in place in front of Rose while she exited her room while inside she was seething.
She didn't for one moment want to stop the children from seeing their father. That would be detrimental to their wellbeing. But right that second she wanted to hex Ronald Weasley stupid.
Stanty had fixed her a glass of wine when she arrived back downstairs. The House Elf was curled up on the settee with a fashion magazine and a shot glass full wine for herself. She couldn't help but laugh at the shot glass but reminded herself that the elf could hardly drink a full glass of wine without becoming intoxicated. Hermione remembered it hadn't taken much butterbeer to put Winky under the table.
"Here, you might find this easier," Hermione said helpfully, summoning one of the wine glasses from the kitchen and reducing it in size for the elf. Stanty's eyes light up as Hermione passed her the small wine glass.
"To being free, Miss Hermione," Stanty squeaked, raising her now full miniature wine glass.
"To freedom," Hermione murmured, clinking her glass against Stanty's. They both drank from their glasses, smiling. Stanty quickly went back to her magazine while Hermione picked up a roll of parchment and her quill from the coffee table and began to write a letter to Molly.
She wanted Molly to look after the children here, rather than at The Burrow as she had no intention of running into Ron again. She also had no intention of taking their custody battle back in front of the Wizengamot. She had to think of the children's best interests after all, and going back to having a legal battle with Ron wasn't something she was willing to do just yet.
She hoped Molly would understand.